Deus Ex: The Fall review. A conspiracy in every right.

Mobile gaming has become a sort of minefield for developers. Do they create a new title that is focused at quick, easy and simple values or spend time and money bringing a current series’ to the platform? In most cases the second option results in horrible, unplayable messes in which fans see a series die before them.

So with that said, let me make it clear how much of a fan I am of the Deus Ex series and how much I screamed when Deus Ex: The Fall was announced for iOS. The question is, does it fail like the rest?

Deus Ex: The Fall is a tie in title set to explore in more depth the story and conspiracy that we enjoyed during Deus Ex: Human Revolution. Running alongside that story, Deus Ex: The Fall puts you in the role of Ben Saxon, a former SAS solider now going up against forces much bigger then him. Seeing us travel to new locations, face new and returning enemies and learn a lot more about the world in 2027. Though I’m not one to give away the story I will say now that the writing and complex methods of choice do make for this title to live up to the Deus Ex name.

The issue here however isn’t that this is a game level with the others in the series but rather a cheap rip off. The game is, for a mobile game, at the highest standard it could be. Using all of your iOS devices power and really delivering a great experience. The issue is that it’s on mobile platform.

Everything you loved about Deus Ex: Human Revolution is here. The freedom, it’s limited in some respect, hacking, combat, augmentations, weapons, items and more. It’s packed, and though some features are removed or cut down to work on the mobile device. It’s still all there.

So why, when I praise Deus Ex: The Fall on being a complete package do I then criticize it? Because in a short few words Deus Ex: The Fall is a total let down and I mean that with all hate I can find within the words ‘let down’. Hear me out. Let’s take a series known for it’s complex and deep layers of gameplay, story, and function and then reduce it all down to a mobile spin off. It didn’t work for Dead Space so why would it work here?

Controls are next to awful to use and make the game very tricky to play, even if there are shortcuts such as ‘tap to move’ and the like. Also why is there a stupid ‘fillter’ that displays to show you where your figures have been? I can see where they have been and your blocking the screen. Enemy AI is awful, levels don’t offer much in the way of searching and the combat just doesn’t feel right. I will be honest and say that yes I did play this on the iPhone 5 and though I’m sure on iPad control issues might not be as bad, I must question why it was even release on iPhone. What really grates me however is the unneeded addition of micro transactions and the removal of the inventory.

The option to buy items, ammo and more is always there and you even get popups to remind you that the store is there 24/7 rather then having set locations. Don’t have the cash? That’s fine. Pay real money because that is how Deus Ex was meant to be played right? No. It wasn’t. One point I will make however is that audio is one of the better points to this game. I would suggest headphones for the full depth of sounds that the world has, but heads up, Ben’s voice acting could have been better.

Deus Ex: The Fall is a really difficult one for me. I’m a huge fan of Deus Ex and though the idea of a mobile release made me angry I jumped in hoping for the best. In reward for my hope what I got was a package of disappointment and lies. Yes, it’s good in some respect but in many more it’s just awful. If this game had another few months of development and was released on console, maybe even the Vita, it would be a much more enjoyable ride. However, being release on iOS and soon Android all I can really say is that you are not missing much.

Deus Ex: The Fall is a let down. Nothing else to it. I would happily see this as a full retail release with a bit more time in development and some changes here and there, but as it is. It’s not worth your time.